1. Field
This invention is related to devices for controlling exercise machines and more particularly controls for regulating the difficulty and duration of exercise by the user.
2. State of the Art
It is generally accepted that an exercise program undertaken at regular or repetitive intervals (e.g., three times per week) is a preferred format to secure the best results from the exercise. In order to undertake such a program, it is desirable to perform a set or a sequence (e.g., 5 to ten) of different but complementary exercises each for a selected period (e.g., 10 to 30 minutes each) at the regular or repetitive intervals. Over time, each of the set or sequence of exercises is performed for an increasingly longer time period or with an increased degree of difficulty for substantially the same time period. To make it easy for an average user to keep up a regular exercise routine, it is particularly desirable to have an exercise machine which is simple, inexpensive and lightweight enough for home use.
Individuals vary in their exercise needs and desires. Therefore, it is desirable to provide home exercise machines with a console or control system which is operable by a user to easily design her or his own exercise program, and to store that program for future use. By performing sets or sequences of similar exercises for the same or similar time periods (e.g., ten to 30 minutes) at regular intervals (e.g., three times per week) over an extended time period (e.g., six months), a user can note his or her own increased capability to perform the exercises. Moreover, it is desirable for the user to be able to modify the involved exercise program, or to provide for one or more user-designed programs, all to make the overall exercise easier or more difficult or to otherwise adapt the program to the needs or desires of the users. Further, a mixture of exercise programs can enhance the effectiveness of the exercise by providing for a regulated increase in the time or difficulty and also eliminate some of the monotony attributable to some programs. Such a console or control system would preferably be very "user-friendly", i.e., simple to program with a simple display depicting the programmed exercise.
It is further desirable that an exercise machine console or control system, in addition to being user-programmable, be able to provide preset or "canned" programs. Such preset programs could be fitness tests or workouts predesigned to achieve certain exercise performance goals or the like.
Certain previous exercise machine controllers, such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,678,182 (Nakao), U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,337 (Shyu), and EP 0 199 442 to Tsuyama, have not provided a user-programming mode, but have not provided a user-programming option. Instead, these consoles provide only manual operation, a choice of factory-inserted programs, or both. Without user programming, the user must remember or record externally the duration and difficulty of the exercise, if a user desires to repeat a user designed exercise sequence. Alternatively, the user may be forced to select a preset program, which may not fit the user's particular needs or desires.
A treadmill is one type of exercise machine which is widely available and may include a variety of features and operational controls. Typical treadmills include controls to vary the speed of the tread as well as some type of structure to vary the angle of inclination of the treadmill surface. Adjustments to the angle of inclination may be made in order to regulate what may be viewed as the resistance or the degree of difficulty of the exercise being performed by the user on the treadmill. Desirably, such a machine would have user programmable features.
Another type of exercise machine for which a user programmable console is desirable is a stepper or climber. For such a machine, the exercise difficulty parameter is the effort required to step up and thereby push the pedal to the low position, and the speed of stepping.
A need remains for an improved user-programmable computerized console to control exercise machines including treadmills and steppers or climbers. Desirably, such a console would allow a user to simply and easily program a series of time segments in terms of exercise parameters including speed and difficulty or effort required per exercise movement. Desirably also, the console would additionally provide a manual mode and/or preset programs.